Many Many Thanks to you All!!!!
My journey is finally ending. I am going home. You are all welcomed to stay with me on Kauai when I get back.
I thank God for keeping me safe. God knows Best!!! It has been amazing because he has placed me with special people. Seeing new things and places is always fun but because of the people I have met it has been extra special. It is the people who have touched my life in positive ways. And I hope that I have been able to do the same. God,I believe,placed me with the right people at the right time.
And thanks to Joan Lloyd of the Upper Room Worldwide Ministries base in Nashville,Tennesee who kept me supplied with the Upper Room devotional that helped me keep to my daily routine of morning devotions,journaling,daily planner and Qi Gong.
It kept me centered...in touch with God...and added to keeping my life balanced.
When I get home I expect that I will need time to readjust and get re-established.
My house and yard will need to have some major work. I am happy that Cindy and Martin and the children were able to take care of my home and car while I was away.
I think God placed me here at the Maungarongo Foundation in Te Kopuru a little town next to the Wailoa River...notice the similarity to the word Wailua River. The Wailoa River is sometimes referred to as the brown river or upside down river. It's color is browner than the Waimea River. It is an inlet sea of the Pacific Ocean.
I joined WWOOF,willing workers of organic farms,so I can learn about organic farming and meet Maori people. I got both here. It is also a Christian Foundation.
The manager Te Aloha who I am staying with is a wonderful people who has done a lot of social work for her people and when she was in Hawaii in 1993 was invited home by Roselle Bailey,who she did not know but who knew about Te Aloha. Te Aloha's uncle was connected to the Hokulea canoe building and voyaging projects.
Iam enjoying my stay here and learning much about organic farming and companion plants. I learned about WWOOF at a youth hostel in Brisbane,Australia. I later learned that the movement was started in New Zealand in the 1970s.
Just before leaving Australia I learned that Maile Wehrheim was going to school in Wellington, NZ. After a couple of days in Auckland I flew to Wellington and spent several days with Maile. We hiked up Kapiti Island,a nature conservatory. It was wonderfull. After five nights there flew back to Auckland then took a 3 hour bus ride to Dargaville where Te Aloha picked me up to stay at Te Kopuru 11km South/West.
Australia and New Zealand newspapers have been covering the U.S. political scene quite well. New Zealanders were against the Iraq war so they have little love for
America. I have been welcomed and I certainly can understand why. Also learned that Japan and China with U.K. are their biggest import/export countries.
I have felt very at home in New Zealand. It feels like Kauai in many ways.
However, I am eager to get to warm Hawaii. I will stay with daughter Shari and husband Jonah and grandsons Zion 7yrs and Kauila 5 yrs for about 10 days before returning to Kauai on the 8th or 9th of June. Shari reports that Zion took the SAT test for first graders and scored in the top 1% in the nation. That is Big News!!!
With that I say Aloha and Mahalo and A Hui Hoa,
Joanne
Friday, May 23, 2008
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Now in Wellington
Hi Everybody,
Last Thursday flew into Auckland,but was invited to Wellington so flew in Saturday.
I like Wellington the Capitol of New Zealand. I recently learned that Maile Wehrheim,JoAnn Yukimura's daughter was attending school here so it has been great spending time with Maile. She is a beautiful girl and her host Rotarian family Mark & Rita Carroll and two sons are very impressed with her. They had Maile and I for dinner last Sunday night. Sunday was a big day. In the morning Maile and her guest(me) was invited by the Rotary to Kapiti Island,a nature conservatory. It rained in the morning when we got on the boat,but cleared up in the afternoon. WOW!!! what a beautiful island. Maile and I climbed up to the very top. It took up a good two hours to go up and another hour and a half going down. But it was all worth it. I loved walking through the lust forrest with many native birds singing and so friendly one came down and sat on the hikers' shoulders. I will admit we often wondered "are we almost there?"
Maile is here on Rotary Ambassador scholarship and has been invited to many clubs and groups to speak about Hawaii. She is also attending classes at Victoria University.
I return to Auckland tomorrow. Maile offered to take me to the airport. How nice of her.
Until next time Aloha.
Last Thursday flew into Auckland,but was invited to Wellington so flew in Saturday.
I like Wellington the Capitol of New Zealand. I recently learned that Maile Wehrheim,JoAnn Yukimura's daughter was attending school here so it has been great spending time with Maile. She is a beautiful girl and her host Rotarian family Mark & Rita Carroll and two sons are very impressed with her. They had Maile and I for dinner last Sunday night. Sunday was a big day. In the morning Maile and her guest(me) was invited by the Rotary to Kapiti Island,a nature conservatory. It rained in the morning when we got on the boat,but cleared up in the afternoon. WOW!!! what a beautiful island. Maile and I climbed up to the very top. It took up a good two hours to go up and another hour and a half going down. But it was all worth it. I loved walking through the lust forrest with many native birds singing and so friendly one came down and sat on the hikers' shoulders. I will admit we often wondered "are we almost there?"
Maile is here on Rotary Ambassador scholarship and has been invited to many clubs and groups to speak about Hawaii. She is also attending classes at Victoria University.
I return to Auckland tomorrow. Maile offered to take me to the airport. How nice of her.
Until next time Aloha.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Goodbye to Australia,Hello to New Zealand
Tomorrow I'll be flying from Sydney to Auckland.
After Blue Mountains I went to Australia's Capitol for a day. Camberra I found was quite different from the other Aussie cities I've visited. I expected it to be as or more modern. It gave me a more small town feeling. Parliament House was impressive,and the outside of the National Museum of Australia was ultra modern,but somehow I felt less money and care was given this city. I guess being Australia's Capitol I expected it to have the same quality.
For my last full day in Australia I spent my day at Hyde Park and Art Gallery of New South Wales. I think Sydney is an exceptional city. I think Hyde Park,Sydney Museums,Art Gallery,Opera House,Botanical Gardens,Sydney Bridge,historical buildings and churches and modern buildings are really impressive and exordinary. I am impressed with their hiways,under ground tunnels and train system. Everything seem to be bulit so beautifully and well designed. I was impressed with Madrid,Spain when Eduardo gave me a walking tour. But I must say Sydney is even more impressive.
Both cities have beautiful parks with many benches where people can find beautiful,peaceful places to find rest from the busy city life.
Big banners along Park Street in Sydney say Let's Make Sydney green global connected by 2020-30. Systainable Sydney. Australia has laws forbidding the cutting of trees. And museums carry strong messages to keep awareness of the need to care for the environment,animals,plants,water,air,etc.
Traveling around the world has open my eyes to many things. It has been great.
I am looking forward to my stay in New Zealand the country where WWOOF,willing workers of organic farming,began.
After Blue Mountains I went to Australia's Capitol for a day. Camberra I found was quite different from the other Aussie cities I've visited. I expected it to be as or more modern. It gave me a more small town feeling. Parliament House was impressive,and the outside of the National Museum of Australia was ultra modern,but somehow I felt less money and care was given this city. I guess being Australia's Capitol I expected it to have the same quality.
For my last full day in Australia I spent my day at Hyde Park and Art Gallery of New South Wales. I think Sydney is an exceptional city. I think Hyde Park,Sydney Museums,Art Gallery,Opera House,Botanical Gardens,Sydney Bridge,historical buildings and churches and modern buildings are really impressive and exordinary. I am impressed with their hiways,under ground tunnels and train system. Everything seem to be bulit so beautifully and well designed. I was impressed with Madrid,Spain when Eduardo gave me a walking tour. But I must say Sydney is even more impressive.
Both cities have beautiful parks with many benches where people can find beautiful,peaceful places to find rest from the busy city life.
Big banners along Park Street in Sydney say Let's Make Sydney green global connected by 2020-30. Systainable Sydney. Australia has laws forbidding the cutting of trees. And museums carry strong messages to keep awareness of the need to care for the environment,animals,plants,water,air,etc.
Traveling around the world has open my eyes to many things. It has been great.
I am looking forward to my stay in New Zealand the country where WWOOF,willing workers of organic farming,began.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Katoomba and the Blue Mountains
Katoomba,Bullaburra,Warrimoo,Emu Plains,Lapstone,Rooty Hill,Doonside,Toongabbie,Parramatta...these Aborigini names get me. These are some of the names along the railroad tracks as I traveled to Katoomba to visit Mary Ellen and the Blue Mountains. Mary Ellen said the Aborginies did not have a written language. Some say the Hawaiians did not have a written language until the missionaries came to Hawaii. However,Herberta Kauahi Montgomery claims they did but it wasn't in English.
This is one of the many reasons why traveling is so interesting. My knowledge of the Aboriginies(spl)was almost zero. Their history as to how they were treated by the British seems unbelieveable. They occupied this land now called Australia 70,000 years ago.Today there are not many left.
The train ride from Cheltenham to Katoomba took almost three hours,but I enjoyed the ride. The trains have comfortable seats and wide windows and the view is spactacular especially as it climbs up toward the Blue Mountains.
Mary Ellen doesn't own a car but walking is very pleasant and everything is walking distance from her house. The weather and landscape is like norhern Ohio in the Fall.
It is just beautiful..oak,maple,pine,elms,everygrees,eculypic but even more varied with camelias,honeysuckle,monsteria,palms,bird of paradise,hibiscus,and many plants we have in Hawaii.
I arrived in Katoomba on Friday around 4:00pm. There are many little shops along the streets...gifts and coffee shops. So we decided on the way to her place to stop and enjoy a capucino and expresso and share a yummy moist carrot cake. I've come to realize that in Australia there are almost as many Europeans as Asians;Chinese,Indonesians,Malasians,Thai,Vietnamese,Indians,Africans,Greeks,Mexicans,South Americans,etc. and therefore many restaurants reflecting this.
I learned one of Mary Ellens hobbies is cooking so I was treated to delicious home cooked food while I stayed with her. And she buys nutritious wholesome foods like sesami,flax,fruit and nut breads. mmmmm so good.
Saturday turned out to be an extraordinarily beautiful day...especially lucky for us because they had snow on Tuesday. We packed up a lunch and left her house at 10am and was able to walk all thoughout the Blue Mountains' well maintained walkways. There are many many look out points and trails. And see the many native birds so many colorful varieties,gazila,magpie,cockatoo,even their mayna birds have bright colors.
The huge boulders,colorful sheer cliffs,and valleys and trees and shrubs and bottle brush and many types of "potea" called a different name here because they a slightly different species,and water falls,pools and vastness of the forrest and expands between the mountains made nature walking so wonderful.
When we got back I was pooped,but Mary Ellen had enough energy to make a big dish of delicious vegitarian lazanyna and garlic bread and have two couples over for dinner.
Her sister made apple crumbles for dessert. The conversation went until nearly midnight.
Before I left on the train at 1;20p next day Mary Ellen, her sister Kristy and I sat in front of the historic Carrigon Hotel,originally built in the 1850s during the gold rush era. There was a poster advertising a period Ball so we pretended we were high class society women having tea on the veranda.
The hotel had beautiful colored glass windows everywhere.
I almost forgot to tell you about having hot chocolate at one of the chocolate-coffee shops.
I haven't seen this done anywhere else. They brought a special tall narrow red cup with lighted candle at the bottom,with a special metal straw,a separate small pitcher with warm milk and another small individual bowl of chocolate chips. I was instructed to make my own chocolate drink putting in chocolate chips according to my taste.
Actually a person could spend a lot more days trekking the Blue Mountains. One could take a Scenic Skyway...the world first with Electro-Sceni Glass Floor so you can see the ancient ravines,water falls,and forest far below. Also there is a Scenic Railway with an incline of 52 degrees called the "Mountain Devil" or travel by cable car to the forst floor. I didn't do those things,but it is just as wonderful to walk the many trails.
I think it is obvious I thoroughly enjoyed my experience in the Blue Mountains.
I was told that the haze in the mountains was caused by the gum trees,but according to the article in the Blue Mountains Tourist newspaper that isn't true. When asked about it Professor Harry Messel of the Department of Physics at the University of Sydney said that it was due to an optical phenomenon called 'Rayleigh scattering'.
This is one of the many reasons why traveling is so interesting. My knowledge of the Aboriginies(spl)was almost zero. Their history as to how they were treated by the British seems unbelieveable. They occupied this land now called Australia 70,000 years ago.Today there are not many left.
The train ride from Cheltenham to Katoomba took almost three hours,but I enjoyed the ride. The trains have comfortable seats and wide windows and the view is spactacular especially as it climbs up toward the Blue Mountains.
Mary Ellen doesn't own a car but walking is very pleasant and everything is walking distance from her house. The weather and landscape is like norhern Ohio in the Fall.
It is just beautiful..oak,maple,pine,elms,everygrees,eculypic but even more varied with camelias,honeysuckle,monsteria,palms,bird of paradise,hibiscus,and many plants we have in Hawaii.
I arrived in Katoomba on Friday around 4:00pm. There are many little shops along the streets...gifts and coffee shops. So we decided on the way to her place to stop and enjoy a capucino and expresso and share a yummy moist carrot cake. I've come to realize that in Australia there are almost as many Europeans as Asians;Chinese,Indonesians,Malasians,Thai,Vietnamese,Indians,Africans,Greeks,Mexicans,South Americans,etc. and therefore many restaurants reflecting this.
I learned one of Mary Ellens hobbies is cooking so I was treated to delicious home cooked food while I stayed with her. And she buys nutritious wholesome foods like sesami,flax,fruit and nut breads. mmmmm so good.
Saturday turned out to be an extraordinarily beautiful day...especially lucky for us because they had snow on Tuesday. We packed up a lunch and left her house at 10am and was able to walk all thoughout the Blue Mountains' well maintained walkways. There are many many look out points and trails. And see the many native birds so many colorful varieties,gazila,magpie,cockatoo,even their mayna birds have bright colors.
The huge boulders,colorful sheer cliffs,and valleys and trees and shrubs and bottle brush and many types of "potea" called a different name here because they a slightly different species,and water falls,pools and vastness of the forrest and expands between the mountains made nature walking so wonderful.
When we got back I was pooped,but Mary Ellen had enough energy to make a big dish of delicious vegitarian lazanyna and garlic bread and have two couples over for dinner.
Her sister made apple crumbles for dessert. The conversation went until nearly midnight.
Before I left on the train at 1;20p next day Mary Ellen, her sister Kristy and I sat in front of the historic Carrigon Hotel,originally built in the 1850s during the gold rush era. There was a poster advertising a period Ball so we pretended we were high class society women having tea on the veranda.
The hotel had beautiful colored glass windows everywhere.
I almost forgot to tell you about having hot chocolate at one of the chocolate-coffee shops.
I haven't seen this done anywhere else. They brought a special tall narrow red cup with lighted candle at the bottom,with a special metal straw,a separate small pitcher with warm milk and another small individual bowl of chocolate chips. I was instructed to make my own chocolate drink putting in chocolate chips according to my taste.
Actually a person could spend a lot more days trekking the Blue Mountains. One could take a Scenic Skyway...the world first with Electro-Sceni Glass Floor so you can see the ancient ravines,water falls,and forest far below. Also there is a Scenic Railway with an incline of 52 degrees called the "Mountain Devil" or travel by cable car to the forst floor. I didn't do those things,but it is just as wonderful to walk the many trails.
I think it is obvious I thoroughly enjoyed my experience in the Blue Mountains.
I was told that the haze in the mountains was caused by the gum trees,but according to the article in the Blue Mountains Tourist newspaper that isn't true. When asked about it Professor Harry Messel of the Department of Physics at the University of Sydney said that it was due to an optical phenomenon called 'Rayleigh scattering'.
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